Keys To Growth - 3

....let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom. Colossians 3:16

I think I was only 9 years old when I asked for a Bible for Christmas. (I got it.) This desire can have only been Holy Spirit born because my family were not active Christians although my sister and I always went to Sunday School and our parents would generally attend church on Family Service days every month. 

When I was 13 I asked Jesus to be my Lord and Saviour and then began my real journey in God's word.  I used the Scripture Union Daily Bread devotional notes for years and their key verse was Psalm 119:105 Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.  I believed it, and though I had no significant personal discipling or strong teaching in church until in my 20s I tried faithfully to read and understand God's word.

One of the joys of my life is weekly Bible Study with a group of wonderful ladies.  Whoever thought that studying God's word could be such fun and cause so many laughs along the way.  It is also a wonderful time of developing loving, supportive relationships.  Ladies, I thank God for each of you!

This verse from Colossians 3 has certainly been a 'life verse' for me.  I am so glad that I have studied the word in my early years because I found that I now have a 'storehouse' of scripture within me which is so useful.  As I write these devotionals, scripture verses often just come to mind.  I can't always remember where they are from but I can use a concordance (usually www.blueletterbible.org on line), and I can locate them.

God's word teaches us how to grow in so many ways.  It is our handbook of how to do life successfully.  It is nourishment for our spiritual life which will challenge us and help us grow as healthy disciples of Jesus Christ.  The only way for the Word to dwell richly in us, is for us to make it a part of our daily routine and to meditate upon it and allow it to change us.  It is also good to have this word come up in our spirit when we are around people who need a word of encouragement.

If you are not a part of a Bible Study group, I would thoroughly recommend it.  If there's not one near you, why not start one and you might find a wonderful source of fellowship and strength in your community as I did.  We use the Know Your Bible Studies (KYB) which delve into the word and make us think and apply the scriptures to daily life.  They are available in many languages.  If you want to know more you can email me.

Prayer:  Jesus, thank you for your Word which guides me through this life.  Please increase my desire to have it dwelling richly in me, not only to cause growth in me but to be a well from which I can draw encouragement for others too.  Amen

Keys To Growth - 2

.....know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness do God.  Ephesians 3:19

Just this week I heard it stated  in a TV segment that something like 60% of women (interviewed) said that they didn't like their husbands to see them without makeup; that they sleep at night "with their face on".  Now I didn't laugh too much about that or think that it was ridiculous because early in my marriage I was the same.  I got over it, probably after getting sick of trying to get lipstick off the pillowcase, but it took me many more years to get over other people seeing me without makeup.  I don't think I'm fully over it still!  There I've exposed my insecurity!  Why are we like this?  Because we think people will think less of us if they see 'the real me'.  That is so untrue.  When they see us they won't feel so bad about themselves!!  Golly I'm being naughty today!  To all women who wear no makeup......hooray for you!

 

We can be like the 'can't see me with out makeup women' with God.  We can 'hide' from him in different ways, thinking that he won't like what he sees.  Actually, the truth is we can't hide so don't bother trying.  He sees it all and loves us in spite of our junk.  

 

I think that is why Paul admonishes us in today's scripture to 'know the love of God that passes knowledge.' He says that God's love surpasses our understanding. I think that means that we will never fully understand it, but we should delve into the truth of it and allow it to become imbedded in our thinking.  Why is it so important that we believe and embrace the truth of God's love for us?  I believe it is because it fulfils our basic human need for acceptance, validation and to know that we are loved just as we are.

I am thrilled to find that there is a whole new generation of Christians rising up who have embraced the love and grace of God in such a way that it is changing the way they take the message of the gospel into the world.  They don't go and preach on street corners, or give out tracts, they go out with the specific purpose of loving people where they are at, and offering words of encouragement and validation.  Isn't this what Jesus did? He mixed with the outcasts, not the religious.  He didn't preach to them, he loved them and accepted them and healed them.

We know that the world is looking for love in all the wrong places.  We cannot and must not just sit back and acknowlege that and do nothing.  We have the power to change lives, one at a time. When we embrace and understand the love of God for ourselves we will be secure enough and fully equipped to go out into our world and love on others.  It's just that simple.  Let's go do it!

Prayer:  Father God, thank you for loving me in spite of my imperfections.  Thank you for laying down your life for me while I was still a sinner.  Help me to embrace the truth of your love so deeply that it will produce a life-changing flow of love from me to a loveless world. Amen

Keys to Growth- 1

That Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him. Your roots will grow down into God's love and keep you strong. Ephesians 3:17

It seems like we are still in gardening mode! This is not a picture of anything I have grown. My attempt to grow vegetables was in those new style corrugated iron, above ground gardens. I was very excited at the prospect of picking dinner vegetables from the garden, but I lost the battle. It seemed to be a lot of work for too little return in our case. More of that later.

For anything to grow it must start with something - a seed, a bulb or a cutting.  The Christian faith is the same.  It must start with something, that something is the seed of trust. We put our trust in God's loving gift of Jesus Christ and Christ's sacrifice, in our place, for our sins.  When we do that, we have the beginnings of a new life, the spiritual life.  Our spirit becomes alive to God and so then we have something to develop and grow. 

It is helpful to know that there has been a time in my life when I have invited Jesus Christ into my heart as Lord and Saviour.  It's not about church attendance or being good or never hurting anyone.  It's about trusting that through Christ I have received the unconditional love of God, cleansing from sin, and that is my only qualification for eternal life when I die.  It is all about faith.  Ephesians 2:8-9 says God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it.  It is as simple as that.  If you can't remember doing it, why not do it now.

To get a plant growing it needs nutrients and water.  The problem with my garden boxes was that   I couldn't keep enough water to the plants.  The ground always seemed dry.  When we dug the ground over we found wads of fine root growth.  The very clever eucalypt trees, big ones, nearby had developed a source of water in my gardens and were robbing the vegetables.  Result- poor growth.

A Christian's nutrition comes through reading God's word and getting to know the nature of God and what a Christian life should look like.  It's like getting to know 'the family guidelines'.  We also need the fellowship of other Christians and good Bible teaching to help us grow. Given these conditions, we can't help but grow and develop.

The verse above in Ephesians speaks about our roots needing to go down deep into God's love and this will make us strong.  When we know that we are loved with an everlasting love, and accepted with an unconditional love we will become secure and ready to produce good fruit for God's Kingdom.  This is the first part of our discipleship process.  Becoming a Christian is not the end, it is only the beginning of an exciting and fulfilling life journey. 

Prayer:  Lord Jesus Christ, thank you for new life in you. Thank you for your great love for me. Help me to be committed to growth and fruitfulness for your Kingdom.   Amen

Growth

  ........ grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. 2 Peter 3:18

Increasingly in the past few months I have been drawn to notice how natural it is for plants to grow. Recently a young Grevillea shrub near our driveway had been snapped off a few centimetres above the ground.  Now, a month later, it has lots of new growth bursting out.  Some other plants that I wanted to divide into more than one head suffered at my hand, being topped by my secateurs and they have obligingly sprouted either side of the main stem now.  Growth can't help but happen if the circumstances are right.  Pruning caused double growth!

On the other hand, Colin found a beautiful rose when we were enjoying a cooling swim in a river when we were on holiday.  It was on a good stem with leaves. I took it back to the caravan and enjoyed it's beauty for our last couple of days then decided I would cut it back and bring it home to plant, which I did.  After a week of good conditions, just the right amount of water and sun it started to sprout and soon had little leaves, much to my joy.  Then in my desire to encourage it even more I over watered it and it drowned!  I was devastated.

Christians have the inbuilt propensity for spiritual growth given the right conditions.  Growth is part of God's plan and purpose for us.  We do, however, have to have the right conditions.  I thought I would list some for you to mull over, not necessarily in any order.

• That Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him. Your roots will grow down into God's love and keep you strong. Ephesians 3:17
• .. know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. Ephesians 3:19
• Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly. Colossians 3:16
• Continue in the faith, grounded and steadfast, and are not moved away from the hope of the gospel which you heard..  Colossians 1:23
• ...let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. Hebrews 12:1
•  .... if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another. 1 John 1:7
• Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice! Philippians 4:4
• ....let us continue to love one another, for love comes from God. Anyone who loves is a child of God and knows God. 1John 4:7
• I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. John 15:5

Prayer:  Lord Jesus, thank you that you have given clear directions in your word for my growth, but that the key is just resting in You, because without that I can do nothing.  Amen

•  

Foundations - 3



Stand therefore, having tightened the belt of truth around your loins....  Ephesians 6:14

Have you ever experienced the frustration of trying to have a relationship with someone who seems so perfect, has it all together, has an answer for every situation and never seems to make a mistake? It is almost impossible and very discouraging.  I tried to be that kind of person because I felt that's what God wanted.  It was about performance and it was not helpful to anyone, especially not to me or my family.

When I learned how to laugh at myself I allowed myself to make mistakes and life became so much easier.  It's good that I learned that a few years ago because I really need to be able to do that more and more these days. Those of my contemporaries will know what I mean!  Mistakes seem to happen so often.

I discovered (from Kris Vallotten in his book Spirit Wars, and checked it out for myself) that when Paul speaks about the belt of truth in Ephesians 6:14, the word 'truth' not only refers to God's word, but in a subjective sense it means 'truthfulness not only in our speaking but sincerity and integrity of character'.  Truthfulness is an important foundation in our life.

Truth is not only about the words we speak but the actions of our lives - how we present ourselves to others.  Many people hide, like I did, behind a wall of perfection or high performance.  They are afraid that to show themselves otherwise is to be vulnerable to rejection.  The opposite is more often true.  We frighten people off with our perfectness because they feel they can never be good enough for us. 

Others hide behind a wall of privacy, afraid to let anyone see what they are really like.  Their 'truth' is, "I've been hurt before, I'm not going to let you hurt or reject me."  As soon as you try to get close to them the wall goes up and you find yourself shut out, confused and frustrated that you can't have a real relationship with that person you really like a lot.

It takes courage to be vulnerable.  It also takes being able to receive and be comfortable in the truth of God's unconditional and unending love for us, because when we feel secure in His love we can love others and allow them into our lives. 

Loving Father, please show me if I have walls of protection in my life that prevent me from having meaningful relationships with others.  Help me to have the belt of truthfulness firmly in place in my life, trusting in you to be my protection and shield.  Forgive me for trying to protect myself.  Amen

Foundations - 2

For no one can lay any foundation other than the one we already have—Jesus Christ. 1 Corinthians 3:11

 

We live in a developing area so preparations for house foundations are a very common sight. In preparing foundations for a building there are a number of steps.  First the site is cleared and then often there is a bit of digging out to be done, then often a load of gravel is laid before various reinforcing steel is laid, box work for the cement to be poured into built , plumbing pipes to be set in place and so on.  Attention to detail is vital.

 

In Foundations - 1, I mentioned about our foundation being our belief system; about God and about ourselves.  There is a lot of foundational work to be done in our lives and if it is not done correctly we will be building on a poor foundation. 

 

In our early Christian years we were part of a church that taught the word of God and evangelised and discipled well but some of the doctrine was incorrect.  When we finally realised, 5 years down the track, that we were trapped in a controlling, religious church, rather than a releasing, grace-teaching church, a certain amount of damage had already been done to our foundation.  Our  belief system was off centre in some areas.  It has taken us many years to become really free of some of that belief system that was instilled into us back then.  Praise God for the freedom that has come as we have re-aligned our thinking with God's help and good teaching.

 

This verse in 1 Corinthians 3:11 talks about Jesus being our foundation.  Through faith in Him and who He is; the Son of God, Saviour of the world, soon coming King, lover of our souls, healer, deliverer, peace-giver and so much more, we have a wonderful and sure foundation.  I want to leave you, today, with some verses to check out and meditate on to strengthen your foundation. Enjoy!

 

Matthew 14:33, John 3:18, Luke 2:11, Revelation 19:16, Psalm 135:3, Psalm 147:3, Psalm 18:2, Romans 5:1

 

Prayer: Wonderful Saviour, let my foundation be strengthened and established so that when the winds of adversity blow, I know that He whom I have trusted in is faithful and able to keep me. Amen

Foundations - 1

Anyone who listens to my teaching and follows it is wise, like a person who builds a house on solid rock. Though the rain comes in torrents and the floodwaters rise and the winds beat against that house, it won’t collapse because it is built on bedrock. Matthew 7:24-25

As this goes to my blog we are being beaten about by winds and heavy rain, though not so heavy as many north of us have experienced in the wake of a serious weather system.  Again the Lockyer Valley out of Brisbane is under serious flood watch as are other areas that were inundated just a couple of years ago.  The conditions remind us again of the necessity of building upon substantial foundations.  When we first came to Australia in 1986 we were looking to buy a house in Maitland which was flooded in the 1950's.  People told us not to buy anything on the floodplain and we didn't, but we notice that areas that were not allowed to be on then because they were considered floodplain, now have houses.  We can only hope they will not be sorry later.

When a large building is being constructed these days it seems to take forever before we see anything appearing above the ground.  The foundational work is very important to the longevity and safety of the building.  This is what Jesus was speaking about in these verses; the importance of getting the foundations right. But he was referring to the foundations of our life.

The foundation that needs to be developed is our belief system.  What we believe about God and what He says about us and life.  This does not happen overnight.  Our building block is the Bible, God's word.  Reading it and allowing it to become part of our life is vital to having a strong foundation.  We need to build our life upon God's word by obeying the principles it portrays.  We have to continue to allow God's word to guide and convict us daily.  It becomes our plumbline, keeping us on a good and safe track.  We ignore it to our own detriment. 

To obey God's word is to walk in the fear of the Lord and to honour Him.  Not that we are afraid of Him, for He is our loving, compassionate, kind and merciful Father, quick to forgive (Exodus 34:6-7).  Today I notice the lack of respect that many (fortunately not all) young people have for their elders.  It shows up in so many ugly ways.  Disobedience to parents was one of the marks of the 'last days' that Paul wrote about to Timothy in 2 Timothy 3:2. 

However, it is just as possible for Christians to be disobedient toward their Heavenly Father, and think nothing of it.  I'll leave you to pause and think about that!  Are there ways that your foundation is shakey because you are not building well upon the truth of God's word?  Sometimes God's ways can feel uncomfortable to us.  We want to do it our way or the 'easy' way.  But often when we try to do it the easy way, we find out the hard way!

Prayer:  Father God, open my eyes to see when I walk in ways that will erode the good and strong foundation that you want me to have in my life.  Help me to stand firmly upon your word and so experience the fullness of life you want and have planned for me.  Amen